The southern angle-headed dragon or southern forest dragon (''Lophosaurus spinipes'') is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

agamid Agamidae is a family of over 300 species of iguanian lizards indigenous to Africa, Asia, Australia, and a few in Southern Europe. Many species are commonly called dragons or dragon lizards. Overview Phylogenetically, they may be sister to the ...

lizard

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

to Australia.

Geographic range

''L. spinipes'' is native to eastern

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal A ...

rainforests Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainforest ...

and rainforest margins from around

Gosford Gosford is the city and administrative centre of the Central Coast Council local government area in the heart of the Central Coast region, about north of Sydney and about south of Newcastle. The city centre is situated at the northern extr ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

to near

Gympie Gympie ( ) is a city and a locality in the Gympie Region, Queensland, Australia. In the Wide Bay-Burnett District, Gympie is about north of the state capital, Brisbane. The city lies on the Mary River, which floods Gympie occasionally. The ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

. It is also present in Barrington Tops National Park, New South Wales.

Description

The southern angle-headed dragon has a large and continuous

nuchal The nape is the back of the neck. In technical anatomical/medical terminology, the nape is also called the nucha (from the Medieval Latin rendering of the Arabic , "spinal marrow"). The corresponding adjective is ''nuchal'', as in the term ''n ...

crest with a moderately large

vertebral The vertebral column, also known as the backbone or spine, is part of the axial skeleton. The vertebral column is the defining characteristic of a vertebrate in which the notochord (a flexible rod of uniform composition) found in all chordates ...

crest. The angular brow is pronounced on both adults and juveniles. The snout to vent length is around , additionally there is a long tail which takes the total length to . The colour varies from shades of brown, grey and green. Patterns where present consist of various irregular mottling, blotches and variegations.

Behaviour

Primarily arboreal, the southern angle-headed dragon is cryptic, slow moving and well camouflaged. It's sometimes encountered basking in sunlight after rain but is mostly a thermoconformer, allowing its body temperature to fluctuate with the ambient temperature. It is usually seen perching on the trunks of small trees or on buttress roots or old stumps. When disturbed, it tends not to dash for cover, but rather slides around the trunk until it is out of view.

Diet

The diet includes

insect Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three ...

s and other arthropods such as

spider Spiders ( order Araneae) are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, chelicerae with fangs generally able to inject venom, and spinnerets that extrude silk. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species ...

s and centipedes.

Reproduction

Eggs Humans and human ancestors have scavenged and eaten animal eggs for millions of years. Humans in Southeast Asia had domesticated chickens and harvested their eggs for food by 1,500 BCE. The most widely consumed eggs are those of fowl, especial ...

are laid in shallow nests in rainforest clearings, including along road edges and walking tracks. There is some evidence that females will occasionally lay communal nests. The eggs are vulnerable to predation, particularly by

goanna A goanna is any one of several species of lizards of the genus '' Varanus'' found in Australia and Southeast Asia. Around 70 species of ''Varanus'' are known, 25 of which are found in Australia. This varied group of carnivorous reptiles ranges ...

s. Image:Hypsilurus spinipes - Sugar Creek Jan 1996.jpg, A small southern angle-headed dragon on a cabbage tree palm, near Forster, Australia

Geographic range

Description

Behaviour

Diet

Reproduction

References

Further reading